Jeremy Guthrie can’t pitch at Coors Field. There’s no arguing the point, even from Guthrie, who could win a debate with Lincoln or Douglas if given the chance.

When the right-hander headed toward the clubhouse Wednesday afternoon, pulled after eight outs, he ripped his jersey off. If the Rockies had their way, you get the feeling he might not wear their uniform again.

“I feel frustration, disgust, embarrassment that I can’t do what I am capable of doing,” admitted Guthrie. “People only want to hear about how hard you are working so much. They want results and I want results.”

Guthrie has failed in every way imaginable at home. He squandered a 5-1 lead against the Pirates in the Rockies’ 9-6 loss. The Rockies have been open to trading the right-hander for a month, but other than an initial nibble from the Blue Jays, have received little interest. Three weeks ago, he might have netted a marginal prospect. At this point, he looks more like a salary dump. And even getting a taker on his remaining $3.5 million seems unrealistic.

“They put it out there that they want to trade me and it hasn’t happened. I am not ignorant or blind to what’s going on,” Guthrie said. “I have probably pitched in a way that nobody wants me.”

If the Rockies keep Guthrie in the rotation on the upcoming trip, his road ERA (3.67) makes that defensible. But it makes no sense to let him start again at Coors Field. When he exited in the third inning to boos Wednesday, his home ERA had inflated to 9.51 in just over 41 innings. The franchise was bold in its four-man experiment, so another daring move seems apropos: Start Guthrie only on the road until he’s traded. He gives the Rockies a chance in visiting parks, the faint reason why another team might take a chance on him.

Use him him in Phoenix against the Diamondbacks, then return him to the “piggyback” role next weekend against the Reds, letting Carlos Torres or a Triple-A arm receive the start.

Every team has injuries, even if the Rockies have suffered more than their share. Still, the dissolving of Guthrie has been the nadir of this season. That clearly pains him.

“It’s not a matter of being traded or not, it’s a matter of getting better for the 24 guys around me,” Guthrie said. “I care about them and it hurts me every four days to have this kind of thing happen.”

At worst, his arrival in exchange for starter Jason Hammel and reliever Matt Lindstrom was viewed by baseball executives as a lateral move.

Hammel was a head case, sealing his departure when he spoke in third person after a terrible outing in St. Louis last season. Lindstrom couldn’t work multiple innings, a new priority for the bullpen this year, and wasn’t very good in Denver (4.23 ERA, compared to 1.71 on the road).

Guthrie, in a sense, has melded the flaws of each into his forgettable season. Though he insists otherwise, Guthrie’s problem is that he sees the odds stacked against him at Coors Field. He can’t finish off hitters because his slider doesn’t work on Blake Street.

Guthrie has no issue getting ahead in the count. But 0-2 means little without a putaway pitch. Hitters don’t feel like they are at a disadvantage and crush his mistakes once the count evens. He has yielded a major-league worst 21 home runs, 14 at Coors Field.

“His biggest problem here is not being able to keep the ball in the park,” manager Jim Tracy said.

All the hallmarks of Mike Hampton appeared in the third inning. After allowing a three-run homer to Garrett Jones, Guthrie yelled at Casey McGehee to get in the batter’s box. Then he dropped his arm slot to create movement, something Hampton resorted to when his sinker deserted him.

“I saw an element of frustration,” Tracy said. “It wasn’t a quick hook. It was the end of his day.”

Guthrie performed so poorly in June that the Rockies went to a four-man rotation without him in it. He improved in the bullpen, but has not been able to sustain any momentum now that he’s back in the rotation. This is a proud, smart man who works relentlessly and remains a positive influence in the clubhouse.

But he’s George Clooney as Batman — totally miscast. Coors Field has infected his brain, with either a trade or a relief role at home the only solutions.

The Rockies reached a similar crossroads with Jamie Moyer. This is a season about next season and beyond. Guthrie isn’t going to be here.

It would be better off him for all concerned if he pitched somewhere else, either out of Colorado or out of the rotation at home.

Troy joined The Denver Post in 2002 as the Rockies' beat writer and became a Broncos beat writer in 2014 before assuming the lead role before the 2015 season. He is a past president of the local chapter of Baseball Writers Association of America and has won more than 20 local and national writing awards since graduating from the University of Colorado journalism school with honors in 1993.

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